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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I am heartbroken.  My child fits no mold and is struggling with being successful in any setting.  At school it is the demands that set him off so he leaves class.  He went to PHP and was triggered by the kids who have outward behavior issues and had panic attacks.  He gets overwhelmed at school and cries and cries. He is cognitively very bright but has ADHD and can be disruptive.  Any corrective feedback he views as hostile and he feels attacked and cries and cries (loudly) and leaves class.  What school can accommodate a sensitive kids with so many needs.  He is also socially fine (when he is not upset) and cognitively gifted so he needs a social group.  We are in MOCO. Where would you send him to school?[/quote]

To be blunt - there will never be a program for children with emotional/behavioral needs that doesn't also have other children with emotional/behavioral needs. If he needs an emotional support setting due to meltdowns, work refusal, and classroom disruption then he will likely be in a program with other students with behavior issues. IMO, panic attacks due to other children's behaviors are something he can work on within that setting to develop more coping strategies and to focus on himself. There are variations in programs, though. Bridge tends to have less aggressive behaviors than other emotional support program. [/quote]

RICA mom here---Behaviors at RICA aren't really an issue.  It's not that they don't exist; of course they do.  But the school is set up to deal with them both in terms of personnel and space.  So while in a comprehensive school, the rest of the kids evacuate a classroom when a child has an incident, at RICA, the teacher calls support to come and assist.  The support personnel remove the child and take them to a safe space.  That is their primary job.  There is no waiting until someone is available--they are always available and there are back up people if more than one incident occurs simultaneously.

There is a slight interruption in classroom learning but it really is just a few minutes.  But yes, the other students do witness the initial outburst.  The teacher then returns to teaching.  The therapist for the child who is having issues is called to process in the moment.  When I read about the learning lost in comprehensive schools due to classroom evacuations, I think RICA has an amazing model.  Learning is minimally disrupted while the child that needs help gets it.  Seriously, what more can you ask for?

And I know RICA is the outlier for academics.  But for my 2e kid, it has been amazing.  He was able to access the ELA and compacted math curriculums in elem school.  As he's moved into MS, the teachers have worked to differentiate his learning to be on par with the honors levels.  RICA even offers AP level classes in some subjects depending on demand.

It's not perfect, but it's darn good.  If I could change anything it would be the lack of extra curricular/club opportunities. [/quote]

Whenever you & other parents post about RICA I’m amazed that such a good program continues to exist. I will say that one benefit of my DS’s “rough” high poverty middle schools is that they have a behavioral response team that is ON POINT in intervening immediately to deescalate - no evacuations. [/quote]

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